Comparative analysis of land snail radiations on Crete

• Antragsteller: Professor Dr. Bernhard Hausdorf
• Fachliche Zuordnung: Evolution und Systematik der Pflanzen und Pilze
• Förderung: Förderung von 2004 bis 2008
• Projektkennung: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Projektnummer 5423240

There are several radiations of land snail taxa on Crete which are supposed to be a result of the fragmentation of Crete into several paleoislands during the late Miocene and Pliocene. The subsequent allopatric speciation on the isolated paleoislands resulted in largely non-adaptive radiations so that the niches of most of the vicariating species hardly differ. This vicariance model predicts that there will be non-random congruence of the distribution areas of species originating on the same paleoisland. Therefore, we will investigate this model by testing whether the distribution areas of the land snail species show non-random congruence. Furthermore, the phylogenies of the radiations might reflect the fragmentation of the paleoislands, if these where separated in an ordered sequence. Thus, we will check in how far the phylogenies of the radiations resemble each other concerning the geographical distribution of the species and indicate the history of the islands and in how far they indicate dispersal events. Supplementary to the available information on other taxa, the systematics and the phylogeny of the endemic radiations of xerophilous hygromiids shall be studied.

• DFG-Verfahren: Schwerpunktprogramme
• Teilprojekt zu: SPP 1127: Radiationen - Genese biologischer Diversität